Vegan broccoli pasta is a quick 15-minute recipe, perfect for your lazy dinner menu. This creamy vegan pasta is easy to make yet delicious and healthy.
This quick broccoli pasta is made with minimum staple ingredients available in our pantry and no other fancy ingredients. This broccoli pasta is vegan. However, if you are vegetarian, you can make this pasta with cream cheese or any cheese sauce.
I have used a vegan cream sauce in this creamy broccoli pasta, but there are many other alternatives, like cashew cream, etc.
You can also simmer broccoli along with pasta or add sauteed broccoli to it. You can also make it a mushy sauce according to your taste preference. If you love broccoli, then you must read the delicious vegan broccoli recipes.
Ingredients for vegan broccoli pasta:
Broccoli - 1 large head cut into bite-sized florets. Cut them into the size you desire.
Pasta: Any pasta works. I also love to make this with spaghetti, penne, and fusilli. Here, I have used spaghetti.
Flour - All-purpose flour or wheat flour. For gluten-free, use gluten-free flour.
Plant-based milk - Unsweetened almond milk or any plant-based milk
Garlic - Fresh garlic minced or finely chopped. Substitute - garlic powder. But fresh garlic adds a strong flavor.
Onion- this is optional. You can skip this or substitute it with onion powder.
Olive oil - or vegan butter
Lemon - For lemony, tangy flavor. However, this is optional too.
Salt & pepper - as per taste
Italian herbs: I love oregano in my pasta. You can add any herbs of your choice. Fresh parsley is a great addition. Alternatively, you can add Italian seasoning of dry herbs.
How to make vegan broccoli pasta?
Boil pasta: Heat water in a saucepan. Add salt generously. When it starts to boil, add the pasta and let it simmer until it is cooked al dente. Reserve ยฝ - ยพ cup pasta cooking water. The starchy pasta water helpsย increase the amount of sauce and adds the flavor of the pasta.
Cook broccoli:ย Cut out the stalks of the florets and chop them into smaller pieces. You can cook the broccoli in two ways here:ย steam/ blanch itย along with pasta or saute the broccoli florets.
If cooking it with pasta, add the florets in the last 2 - 3 minutes. Drain the pasta and broccoli.
Heat oil, add garlic, onion (optional), and broccoli, and saute on medium heat for 3 minutes, stirring in between.
Prepare the sauce - While the broccoli is cooked, remove them to another plate. In the same pan, add more oil. Add onion and garlic. Saute for a minute. Add the flour and saute for another minute.
Then, gradually add the plant-based milk and stir until smooth with no lumps. Simmer for a minute or until it has a creamy texture. Now add salt as required, pepper, and Italian seasoning.
Add the broccoli and pasta: Now add the pasta and broccoli to the sauce. Add the pasta water if necessary and toss them. Simmer for 1 - 2 minutes until the desired consistency is reached.
Tip for the best vegan broccoli pasta
Any pasta works well in this recipe. However, if you have diced the florets finely, small pasta with curves/ folds works best to hold the sauce. Even long spaghetti is suitable for this vegan broccoli pasta.
While cooking pasta, add salt generously to the water. The pasta should be cookedย al denteย (just cooked), not more than that.
You must preserve some pasta water while cooking itย to use later in making the sauce. This will add real flavor to the sauce and make a good quantity of sauce for the pasta.
You can also make this broccoli pasta completely gluten-free by substituting regular pasta with gluten-free pasta, such as rice pasta. Many more gluten-free options are available on the market.
If vegetarian, you can use cream cheese for the pasta sauce.
Vegan Broccoli Pasta
Vegan Broccoli Pasta
Ingredients
- 16 oz spaghetti pasta or any small pasta
- 1 ltr water to boil pasta
- 2 cups broccoli florets
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic minced/pressed substitute - 1 tsp garlic powder
- 2 tbsp chopped onion sub- 1 tsp onion powder
- salt & pepper to taste
- 1 cup plant-based milk preferably unsweetened almond milk
- 3 - 4 tbsp flour/ whole wheat flour
- ยฝ - ยพ tsp Italian herbs or oregano
- Chilli flakes optional
- 2 tbsp Nutritional yeast optional for cheesy flavor
Instructions
- In a saucepan, heat water and bring it to a boil.
- Add salt to the water.
- When it starts to boil, add pasta.
- Cook the pasta as the packet instructions mentioned.
- While cooking pasta, preserve ยฝ cup of the cooking water for further use.
- Once cooked al dente, strain out using a colander.
- In a pan heat some oil.
- Add garlic, onion saute for 10 - 15 seconds.
- Then add the broccoli florets and saute for 3 - 4 minutes, till they turn tender.
- Don't overcook the broccoli as well.
- When cooked, remove the broccoli to another bowl or just push them to one side of the pan making space to saute the flour for sauce.
- If required, add a teaspoon oil on the blank side of the pan.
- Add 1.5 - 2 tbsp flour and stir continuously while sauteing the flour on low heat.
- It may take 1 - 2 minutes maximum.
- Then add plant-based milk to the flour slowly and gradually mixing it well.
- Stir continuosly making this completely lumps-free.
- Once it's lumps-free, bring it to simmer.
- Add some preserved pasta water to increase the sauce amount if you need.
- Simmer till get the creamy saucy consistency.
- Add salt (if required at all), pepper, oregano to the sauce. Also, add nutritional yeast for a cheesy flavor. (optional)
- Next add the broccoli florets, followed by the pasta.
- Stir them gently to mix them all well.
- Turn off heat and serve hot.
- Sprinkle some chilli flakes, parsley for seasoning. (Optional)
Video
Notes
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